|
|
|
July, 2019 The Expansion Plans:Stage 1 - connect Arrowtown to Arthur's Point and down the true left of the Shotover River to Frankton, including a new pedestrian bridge at Tuckers Beach. Stage 2 - connect Jack's Point and Hanley's Farm directly to Frankton with a new pedestrian bridge at Boyd Road. This bridge, combined with a second crossing at Widgeon Place Reserve, will also connect Lake Hayes Estate and Shotover Country to Frankton via the true right of the Kawarau River. The Queenstown Trails Trust is on a mission to fundraise the balance of whats needed for the $15 million expansion plans announced last year to develop a series of new commuter and recreation trails around the basin. The trusts Lou Vicente says the recent fundraising appeal brought in almost $50,000 . However, theres a still a way to go to reach the $70k annual target and we need the communitys help. The Queenstown Lakes District Council has also given a grant of $400,000 to build a new bridge at Lower Shotover and Central Lakes Trust has confirmed a $1.1 million grant for the project. Its now time to get the wider community behind the fundraising, says Lou. Its important to show that community support as this will add weight in our funding application to Central Government for the remaining money needed to get going. Trust chief executive Mark Williams says to grow the trail network, the trust needs to raise public support for the project and ultimately funding. Its also applied for 50 percent funding from MBIE (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment) and is in talks with major private donors. Weve been collaborating with local and national stakeholders to progress QTTs expansion plans and weve made significant developments in the recent months, aided by the governments policy statement on land transport and focus on active modes, he says. Were not just talking about simple trails along existing roads, but brand new routes involving underpasses, river crossings and new active transport hubs where people can transfer from one mode of transport to another. The time has come to request the help of everyday Queenstowners, in a bid to harness community spirit and generosity to raise this ambitious goal of $70,000 in donations, says Mark. If we can work together to raise the remainder of the funds to get the trail expansion started, itll enable our community to ride to school and work, reducing traffic build- ups and delays, especially around school drop-offs and the increasingly busy residential areas, he says. The Queenstown Trail officially opened in spring 2012 with more than 130kms of trails spanning from Queenstown Bay to Gibbston. By the end of last year, the trails were being used by more than two million users (or 827,829 users in 2018), almost half of them locals using the trails recreationally. Source: The Flyer
|
||
+64 27 444 1104
|